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MANILA -- On days like this when I can’t make heads or tails of which story to write first and my fingers are starting to hurt from pounding the keyboard, I think that I would really, really enjoy being a showbiz writer.
The 25th anniversary of the 1986 Edsa popular uprising again stirred feelings of pride and frustration among Filipinos. The pride stems from our having successfully carried out the first “people power” that ousted a dictatorship through peaceful mass action. The frustration boils out of the unfulfilled promises of post-dictatorship reforms. (By Satur C. Ocampo / bulatlat.com)
Recently, there were two positive developments in the Filipino people’s quest for justice: the victims of the Marcos dictatorship finally got what is due them and the impeachment case against Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez is finally being heard. (By Benjie Oliveros / bulatlat.com)
The "war on terror" policy pursued by the past Macapagal-Arroyo administration should be declared as good as dead and should be abandoned by the incumbent President. That policy was based hook, line, and sinker on former U.S. President George W. Bush, Jr.'s neo-conservative theory linking Iraq to the 9/11 bombings. Now, an Iraqi defector who was the primary source of so-called intelligence reports that were used to make a case for Bush's Operation Iraqi Freedom has confessed that he made the whole story up. (By Center for People Empowerment in Governance / bulatlat.com)
Finally the congressional move to oust Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez (for the second time since 2009) has regained momentum. With the new administration’s avowed war against corruption and its majority control of the House, the militant party-list representatives hope the impeachment game will be played fairly this time. Nonetheless, they don’t rule out delaying tactics by the Ombudsman and her backers in the House. By SATUR C. OCAMPO
It is only through the people’s support that the two parties can draw the strength needed to withstand all negative pressures, ensure the efficacy of bilateral agreements and the successful end-result of the peace negotiations. In the final analysis, that is the meaning of the people being the true sovereign power, a fact which neither side disputes. By CAROL PAGADUAN-ARAULLO
The Philippine government should by all means protect Filipinos in trouble abroad, and see to it that their rights are respected. Even more fundamentally, should it put its own house in order, and create the conditions at home that will provide its citizens the means to sustain themselves in the present and to guarantee their future. By LUIS V. TEODORO
The 1986 People Power uprising created a moment of national unity and international credibility that could have been the starting point of real economic progress. By SONNY AFRICA / Ibon Foundation / bulatlat.com
There is nothing wrong with trying to revive the luster of the Edsa People Power uprising, if the celebration would be faithful to its essence: the people's demand for change. There is also nothing wrong with making February 25 a joyous occasion, for as long as it does not try to give the illusion that the struggle for genuine change has been won already. By BENJIE OLIVEROS / bulatlat.com
So who are the real heroes of Edsa? The workers, the urban poor, the farmers, the members of the basic sectors who flooded the streets in the waning days of the Marcos dictatorship and demanded that Marcos step down.
In these times of inhumanity, the thin line between being a journalist and an activist is blurred even more. I know in my heart that I owe no one an apology.
The peace talks now going on in Oslo between the government and the NDFP, having moved on to the deep-seated problems that have been sustaining the CPP-NPA-led armed struggle over 40 years, were the subject of editorial comment in this newspaper the other day. I think that certain points were correctly spotlighted and interpreted in the editorial, but it is amiss on others. By SATUR C. OCAMPO / bulatlat.com
otwithstanding all the reasons for optimism and hope that the peace talks are finally on the roll again, the two parties agree that the way forward is a formidable challenge, strewn with unexpected twists and turns and fraught with pitfalls and obstacles. By CAROL PAGADUAN-ARAULLO / bulatlat.com
Imagine a world without US intervention, violence, manipulation, and bullying. What’s happening in the Middle East is sending across the planet precisely the message that a world other than this is what people want, thereby agitating US policymakers, who have never imagined such a world possible. By LUIS V. TEODORO / bulatlat.com
Nothing much is being said about the agenda and the developments in the talks. This is most unfortunate because what is being negotiated are important matters that could affect not only the peace talks but the future of the Filipino people. And the Filipino people's inputs and involvement in the talks are not only desirable but essential. By BENJIE OLIVEROS / bulatlat.com
I support the peace talks because I believe that the armed conflict in the country can only begin to be resolved if the two sides, the two governments of the GPH and the NDFP, sit and talk and come up with solutions to the problems that precisely resulted in the conflict.
A new era in Philippine football has dawned and I was there to witness it.
My sister and I usually go to the public market at least twice a month to buy vegetables and fish. While I knew that prices of goods have increased, I did not realize how steep the increases had been.
Is the government merely tinkering with figures on poverty and economic growth, or is it honestly and sincerely trying to achieve real economic goals? By SATUR C. OCAMPO / bulatlat.com
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